If I didn't own anything in the previous 28 chapters, why would I suddenly own something, now? ;p

Only a couple more chapters left!


Chapter 29: Of Dragons and Fluffy

The walk down to Hagrid's hut was a slow one; partially because they had never been there before and needed directions. The other part was because they were still debating on what to say.

"Anyone have an idea?" Draco glanced at the three Gryffindors. "I don't think he'll tell us anything if we walk up to him and say 'd'you know anything about that three headed dog on the third floor?'."

"I was hoping you or Edward had a plan…" Harry then glanced at Hermione. "How about you?"

"Well…what if we come off as just interested in magical creatures to start with, and eventually work our way to a Hellhound? But, answer me this…why are we asking, in the first place?"

"Because I don't trust the adults to guard the Stone right," Edward responded easily enough. "That's why Win isn't joining us…she thinks it's safe as it is. I don't."

"Neither do we," Harry added. "Quirrell already made one attempt to get past the Hellhound on Halloween…what's to say he won't make another?"

"Or work something out where he'll have easy access," Draco added. "We need to know the weaknesses of a Hellhound in case he gets ahead of us and we have to stop him."

Hermione grinned wryly. "You're quite Gryffindor for a Slytherin."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Don't mix me up as a lion…I'm a snake, thanks."

Their conversation halted when they approached the wooden door of the hut.

Harry glanced back at the others, then walked up and knocked on the door. According to Remus, Hagrid had been the one that had first taken Harry away from Godric's Hollow, and the large man had often smiled and waved to Harry when they saw each other during the year.

There was a low barking that made the four exchanged worried looks.

"He wouldn't have a smaller Hellhound inside, would he?" Draco asked worriedly as he subconsciously moved so that he was in the back of the group.

"I don't think so…" yet, Hermione didn't sound too sure of herself.

"Only one way to find out." Edward shrugged, but kept his hands close together in case he had to make an emergency transmutation.

There was a "down, Fang!" from inside, and then the door opened to reveal the man they wanted to see.

"Why, 'ello, there!" Hagrid smiled at the four of them. "Dun see you lot that often round here."

"Um…" Harry stammered.

"We heard you knew lots about magical creatures, and wanted to learn about some of them!" Edward grinned.

Hagrid nodded. "That I do, but I'm very busy 'ight now…not in a state to entertain, so…"

The four exchanged a panicked look. It had already been a month since they returned from holiday break, and if Quirrell was going to act, it was going to be sometime in the four months they had remaining. They had to know about the Hellhound now.

The plan was shot, and out of desperation as the door closed, Harry blurted, "We know about the Philosopher's Stone!"

Hermione had told them that she believed that the other professors had helped to protect the stone, and since the current Care of Magical Creatures professor was looking to retire and had been showing his class less and less creatures that were potentially harmful, the only other person that could have brought in the Hellhound was Hagrid.

Hagrid stopped at Harry's words, but finally sighed and opened the door again. "A'right. Come in, then."

The four entered and looked around.

There was a large, gray boarhound that lay like a rug on the wooden floor, and a couple shelves with various things on them. A wooden table sat in the middle of the room, and across from the door was a fireplace that had a cauldron hanging from it over some open flames. Speaking of flames, it was almost unbearably warm in the hut.

The door closed behind them, and the four assembled themselves.

Draco took a seat on the couch, along with Edward and Hermione, while Harry took the other chair at the table.

"How'd you lot find out 'bout that?" Hagrid eyed them.

"We've known about it since almost the beginning of the year," Edward admitted.

"Except for me…" Draco muttered, as he had found out about it over Christmas break.

"After we heard about the break-in at Gringotts, and then accidentally saw the Hellhound on the third floor corridor…" Harry started.

Hagrid blinked. "Who told ye 'bout Fluffy?"

"…Fluffy?" Edward's jaw dropped.

Draco, who hadn't actually seen the Hellhound, just raised an eyebrow. He wasn't very familiar with Hellhounds, either, and the pictures in books didn't do them justice; Edward, Harry, Hermione, or Winry could tell anyone that much.

Harry echoed Edward's incredulous tone. "You named a three headed killer dog Fluffy?"

Hermione looked horrified that the creature even had a name.

Hagrid nodded. "Well, they ain't common, now are they? Ya dun come 'cross a three-headed dog too often, you don't."

Suddenly, before the shocked group could speak, there was a rattling in the cauldron over the fire that drew their attention.

Hagrid rushed over with a pair of large oven mitts on, and pulled out a giant, slightly speckled egg that was moving, and set it on the table.

"Uh, Hagrid, what's that?" Harry, who was the closest, felt his eyes widen. He had never seen an egg that big…there was no way it was a bird.

Draco went over, along with Hermione, while Edward finally managed to untangle himself from Fang (while muttering about dogs liking him and slobbering all over him) to crowd around the table, as well.

"This…er…well, I won it. Off a fellow down at th' pub. Been want'n one fer a while, to tell the truth…"

"One of what?" Harry had scooted his chair back.

Hagrid just gestured to the moving egg, which was obviously about ready to hatch.

"So, wait…" Edward wasn't too interested in magical creatures, so he paid more attention to the conversation. "Some strange bloke down at this pub just happened to have something you wanted in his pocket?"

Draco looked up. When put like that, it was very suspicious. "What did this stranger look like?"

"Dunno…never saw 'is face. Kept 'is hood up th' whole time."

Edward had a sinking feeling. "And…what did you two talk about that led him to believe you wanted this…whatever it is…egg?"

Harry half stared at the moving egg with morbid fascination, and half listened.

Hermione seemed to be doing likewise.

Draco and Edward, however, weren't fooled by outside appearances. They were curious to what was in the egg, but remembered the reason they had come down. If they could steer the conversation over to Fluffy, and what else might lie behind that trapdoor…

"Well, we talked 'bout the sort of creatures I work with. Seemed a decent bloke, and was really interested in the more danger'us of magical creatures."

Draco and Edward exchanged looks.

Then Draco inquired easily, "Did he ask anything about ones you recently acquired?"

Hagrid nodded. "Yea. We talked 'bout a lotta em. He said this would be diff'cult ta handle, but I said ta him…I said, after Fluffy, this would be noth'n!"

Before Draco and Edward had time to be horrified that Hagrid would mention the Hellhound that was guarding a powerful artifact to a complete stranger at some seedy pub, the egg cracked, and a piece of shell shot out and smacked into the wall.

A beak emerged…then an 'arm', which was more of a wing. Then a leg…then a tail…

The egg completely fell away to reveal…

"Is that a dragon!" Hermione exclaimed.

Hagrid beamed proudly, particularly as the dragon 'cooed'. "Yep! Been want'n one fer a long time! 'E finally hatched today…" he lifted a large finger and started to tickle the dragon under the chin. "Ain't that right, Norbert?"

"Norbert?" Hermione was on overload.

Harry just stared at the dragon with wide eyes.

Even Draco and Edward were amazed, particularly since it was most likely illegal for Hagrid to own a dragon, or of anyone to own a dragon.

Then, Edward reminded himself to focus. His single-minded determination came in handy this time, as everyone was too distracted by the dragon, who had just nearly set Hagrid's beard on fire with a hiccup, to remember why they were there…

"Hagrid, you live in a wooden house," Hermione had pointed out while Edward got his mind back to the task.

Hagrid didn't seem to have a problem, or realize the danger of a fire-spewing dragon in a wooden cabin of a house.

"So, uh, Hagrid…did the stranger seem interested in Fluffy?" Edward broke Hermione's incredulity and Hagrid's cooing over the dragon.

"O'course 'e was! I said it before, 'in't I? They're rare, three headed dogs! But I said to 'im…said the trick with any beast, is ta know howta tame it. Like Fluffy, even. Falls asleep if ya play 'im a bit of music."

At that, the others seemed to wake up to the situation.

"Oh, Merlin…" Draco groaned. First, Hagrid turns up with an illegal dragon which he couldn't keep, and then, he goes and lets them know that he had told an absolute stranger how to essentially defeat the first layer of defense the Stone had.

"Huddle!" Harry called in panic.

While Hagrid went back to playing with the dragon, not seemingly concerned of what he had said (or noticing it, due to the distraction of Norbert), the four gathered by the door in a circle.

"What do we do? Hagrid could get fired if he's caught with that dragon…" Harry worried.

"Not to mention that the 'stranger' was probably Quirrell, who now knows how to get past the Hellhound…" Edward refused to call the thing 'Fluffy'. The rug of a boarhound in the hut should have been 'Fluffy', and the Hellhound should have been 'Fang'.

"I don't want him to be sacked…he was a friend of my parents…" Harry gulped.

"What other choice do we have? He can't keep a bloody dragon!" Draco was on the verge of raising his voice.

"Maybe if we just let Dumbledore know, he'll pardon him?" Hermione suggested as she glanced at the boys.

Edward nodded. "Yea…Dumbledore gives second chances and stuff…benefit of the doubt. Else I'd never have been able to heal Al."

Harry agreed. "Not like we know how to smuggle a dragon out of the castle…and even if we did, we wouldn't know where to take him."

"Let's go, then. All four of us should fit under Harry's cloak," Hermione stated decisively.

"Cloak?" Draco had noticed the article of clothing that Harry had under his arm, but hadn't yet been told about it. In fact, Hermione only found out recently.

"Invisibility Cloak…we can sneak back in since it's after curfew without getting caught by anyone," Harry explained.

"Brilliant." Draco breathed in awe.

The four stood back up.

"Well…thank you for your time, Hagrid…" Harry, again, seemed to be the spokesperson for them. "It's late, so we should head back…"

Hagrid looked up from his dragon with a smile. "Dun be strangers, now! Any of yas! Come back anytime!"

At seeing his smile, the group felt a little guilty about what they were going to do, but figured that, if anyone could handle the situation correctly and secretly without causing Hagrid his job, it was Dumbledore. It wouldn't be long until the dragon got too big to fit in the house (either before or after burning it down, Hermione had muttered as they hurried back to the castle under the cloak), and at that point, everyone would know and Hagrid's job would most certainly be in jeopardy.

The boys didn't rightly trust adults for various reasons, but they all agreed that they could trust the Headmaster of Hogwarts. He wasn't a typical adult, after all.

TO BE CONTINUED…